September 13, 1902.]
THE WEIHAIWEI REGIMENT.
(Daily Press, 10th September.) One of the main objections we bare always entertained to the enrolment of Chinese as soldiers in the British or indeed any foreign service is the fact that, sooner or later, they are sure to turn the knowledge thus gained to account in their own country. When it was first proposed by General CAMERON 10 reinforce the garrison of Hongkong by raising a regiment of infantry from among the Hakkas we condemned the project as sure to end in the supply of drill-instructors to the Viceroy of the Two Kwang. Similar- ly when the idea was first mooted of forming a Chinese regiment at Weihaiwei we deprecated the movement as likely to put a weapon into the hands of the Chinese Government which might some day be used against us. But the friends of the scheme pooh-poohed the notion, and subsequently pointed with much triumph to the loyalty and steadfastness with which the First Chinese Regiment stuck to their duty and their officers during the recent operations in North China. That may be admitted, but it may also be pointed out that the circumstances were exceptional. We were then undertaking operations against the Boxers, who were said to be rebels by the Chinese Govern ment, although they were on several oc- casions supported by the Chinese Imperial troops, and aided and encouraged by many bigh officials and princes. Had the soldiers of the First Chinese Regiment attempted to desert to the Boxers the latter would probably have slaughtered them out of hand for having accepted pay and worn the uniform of the hated Fan-kwei. More- over these Shantung men had little sympathy with the fanatic Boxers and had imbibed a pretty shrewd opinion as to the relative strength for off nce of Chinese " braves"
and disciplined foreign troope, and saw on which side their interests lay. But if the Governor of Shantung should at any tine bave needed their services and was willing to pay liberally for them, can it be doubted that they would quit the foreign service for the lax ways and easy work that mark the direction of all official affairs in China? We think not, and it was on this account, more than any other, that we were hostile to the employment of Chinese troops in China.
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CHINA OVERLAND TRADE REPORT. favour of the much abused British officer the events of 1900, and that in fact the that he can, cut of the apparently most teaching was still more necessary for uch slovenly and unpromising material, produce evangelising bodies as exposed women and efficient and well set-up soldiers. The children to awful risks. This journal was natives of Shantung are evidently better among those which uttered the hope that material for soldiers than the people of the the lesson would not be altogether wasted. southern provinces, and it is clear that, Recent pronouncements of the missionary spite of the queue and other drawbacks, it societies have not done much to encourage is pes-ible to transform them into smart such hopes. Yet it is nothing less than troos. The men of the Hongkong Sub-criminal for those Christian churches and mariue Miners compare very badly with sects which devote any of their energies to those of the First Chinese Regiment, and the task of converting China so to ignore while allowing for the fact that the former the teaching of history and the advice of are not subjected to the same discipline their well-wishers, not to mention the and drill as the latter it is not easy to dictates of humanity. We are glad to see imagine them as anything but a sloppy in the Peking and Tientsin Times, in the caricature of a soldier. Our objection to course of an article ou the Hunan murders, the enrolment of Chinese as soldiers, how- an allusion to this very matter. ever, is not so much the difficulty of making of the article fully recognises that it is The writer them efficient and reliable, as the fact that, impossible to prevent adult male enthusiasts sooner or later, they would be sure to be from invading dangerous fields of mis- drafted away to stiffen the Chinese Imperial sionary enterprise, as the bistory of eighteen forces r to act as drill-instructors in their centuries testifies. But he thinks that own land. the Western Powers, are not a military in one direction, in that of keeping women The Chinese, fortunately for formal prohibition might have some effect people, and, having regard to their vast and children from going to their death. numbers and bitter hostility to foreigners generally, we should be in no hurry to continues, "sanction and support the action P'ublic opinion would, we think," he create a military spirit in the Central "of any government which forbade women Kingdom. It may be urged that China " and children to go into places where can always engage foreign military officers as drill-instructors and thus raise an army tunately public opinion in Britain and the "the unspeakable might happen." Unfor- disciplined and armed on the Western United States, the two countries most system, but such an army raised on their concerned, does not seem to be easily own soil, and really subject only to the will educated up to this standpoint. The mis- of the military mandarins, would neversionary bodies who are guilty (as we are become formidable and would be always bound to say) of allowing to go or sending deteriorating. An army drilled and officered defenceless human beings into places where by Chinese soldiers who bad for years been the worst of fates may overtake them still subject to Western discipline and training get in their subscriptions and still content only, miglit, however, become quite a dif- themselves with the stock expressions of ferent ergine if these men bad caught the "glorious fields," "bounteous harvests," and military spirit, as the members of the First the like. Some have even ventured to Chinese Regiment appear to have done. glory in the "spilling of martyrs' blood," For these reasons, we feel relieved rather in છે. most terrible parody of religious than regretful that the first experiment of enthusiasm. This is something far worse the kind is being abandoned, and we trust than ordinary blindness, for it is a blindness the British Government, in making future which wautonly sacrifices the lives of the pr. vision for the garrisoning of its posses- innocent without the slightest advantage to sions in the Farther Fast will be content to offset them. There can be no doubt that draw upon the resources within the British the public, except for an entirely fanatical Empire, and relinquish all idea of employ-section, would, if it realised matters as they ing aliens and mercenaries.
THE WOMAN MISSIONARY IN
CHINA.
(Daily Press, 11th September.) We notice that at a conference of the Bible
That such a temptation would come to the Chinese soldiers of His Britannic Majesty sooner or later we never doubted, Christian Society last month the state- and now something very like coufirma- ment was made by a speaker, who had tion of this premonition is to hard. come from China, that the missionaries in A Peking despatch 10 a Shanghai China, heating that a lady was in training evening contemporary, dated the 2nd for medical missionary work in association inst, appears to the effect that, hearing with the Bible Christians' mission, asked of the proposed disbandment of the First the Conference to render all facilities to her Chinese Regiment of Weihaiwei and the departure for China as soon as she was high degree of efficiency attained by them qualified, "as the need for a lady doctor under the British officers, Prince Su, was now urgent in Yunnan." No com- who is a Commandant of the Peking ments seem to have been made adverse to Gendarmerie, has been conferring lately the granting of this request, so that we with Sir ERNEST SATOW as to the advisa may fairly assume that it stands a good bility of eurolling one hundred men of the chance of being acceded to. After the Weihaiwei Regiment in His Highness's atrocities which formed so terrible a part newly organised gendarmerie to act as drill of the Boxer rising of 1900, attention was instructors. That the regiment is shortly freely drawn in that section of the Far to be disbanded there can be no doubt, for Eastern Press which is not directly when on Coronation Day it was paraded under missionary influence to the heavy before the new Commissioner, Mr. STEWART responsibility resting on those societies LOCKHART, during his address to the which were responsible for sending into officers and men, be alluded to that occasion the interior of China white as the last opportunity he would have of or even on those which permitted its male reviewing then. Mr. LOCKHART awarded workers to take with them far away from deserved praise to the regiment for its the reach of European civilisation their efficiency and good conduct, and especially women and children. The opinion was to the officers who had brought it to such a' widely expressed that it was not only the creditable condition. It speaks volumes in Chinese who needed to learn a lesson from
women
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are, raise an effectual protest against the societies which are to blame. Were the dangers fully understood, all intelligent opinion would demand that women's u sionary work in China shall in future oe restricted to the coast-ports and that on no account shall European women, still less children, be allowed to go into the interior of China. As the writer in our Tientsiu cen- temporary says, men of a certain type cannot be prevented even by legal prohibition, unless accompanied by persecution carried to extermination, from following what they think the divine call. But the sume remark does not apply in the case of the women and children who have lost, their lives in China. As certain missionary bodies have shown that they are deaf to the teachings of experience it is necessary for a higher authority to take it out of their power to do evil in the name of good.
Shanghai rative circles to the effect that The N.-C. Daily News reports a rumour in Minister Tsai Chun's recent action at Tokyo of calling the Japanese police within the sacred precincts of the Chinese Legation raised sach a storm of indignation at Peking because of Ts'ai Chun's lowering the dignity of China that numerous strongly-worded memoria's were presented to the Throne denouncing the Minister. The result of this, according to a despatch from Peking, has been the sending of an Imperial Edict sternly censuring the Minister for his conduct, which will probably lead to H.E.'s resignation.
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